2016 Social Media Marketing Predictions From the Experts By Lisa D. Jenkins December 31, 2015 Are you looking for the hot marketing trends coming in 2016? Do you want to know where social media pros are focusing their attention? In 2015, new platforms made a big splash and several popular networks monetized. To get you ready for what’s coming next, we asked 14 social media marketing experts what to watch for in the new year. 2016 Social media marketing predictions from 14 experts. Here’s what they had to say: #1: Social Media Goes Private Mitch Joel Make no mistake about it, the most social of social activity is going to happen in two unique and private places: private groups and messaging apps. Whether it’s on Facebook or LinkedIn, we’re already starting to see usage of private groups take hold and a surge in people creating them. It’s no secret that if you ask power users on Facebook where they’re seeing the most value from the platform, it’s coming from the private groups that they’re part of. Snapchat started this, but the shift to messaging apps (think Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Line, etc.) is going to force brands to get a lot more private and personal with their social media expenditure. What does all of this mean? We are pushing ever closer to a new kind of social media: one that happens on these public and for-profit channels and networks, but one where the best (and possibly most valuable) content can only be seen by those who are granted permission to see it… or by a small group of people. The...

CITY OF CAPE TOWN 29 DECEMBER 2015 MEDIA RELEASE City enforcement agencies target a happy new year The City of Cape Town appeals to residents to be cautious and sensible this New Year’s Eve. There will be no leniency when it comes to drinking and driving or the illegal discharge of fireworks. Read more below: With New Year’s Eve almost upon us the City would like to remind residents to ensure their celebrations do not infringe on the rights or safety of others. While this is traditionally a time to unwind and celebrate the year behind us, we must do so within the confines of the law. “I would like to remind residents that drinking and driving will be dealt with as severely as the law allows. Not only do you place your life at risk when doing so, but also the lives of other innocent road users. The City’s law enforcement agencies, in conjunction with SAPS, will be staging road blocks at strategic points through the evening, and will not tolerate any driver that is found to have exceeded the legal limit,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith. Further to this we would like to remind residents that the discharge of fireworks is only allowed at the following approved sites: Westfleur Sportsfield, Reygerdal Drive, Atlantis Tourism Centre, Athens Road Table View – Beach front Bishop Lavis Sportsfield, Lavis Drive, Bishop Lavis Metropolitan Sportsground, Melkhout Street, Bonteheuwel Delft Central, Sportsground, Main Road, Delft Swartklip Sports Complex, cnr Spine and Swartklip Roads, Mitchells Plain Athlone Stadium parking area (Eastern side),...

CITY OF CAPE TOWN 29 DECEMBER 2015 MEDIA RELEASE Reminder: Water restrictions to be implemented from 1 January 2016 From 1 January 2016 water will be more expensive. This has been implemented in order to encourage water saving. Read more below: The City of Cape Town would like to remind residents that the implementation of Level 2 water restrictions will be effective from 1 January . Customers should note that they will be charged according to a tariff designed to be approximately revenue-neutral when applied to the 10% reduced consumption levels of an average user. In other words, if a resident uses 24 kl of water in a month this will cost them R294,62 under Level 1 conditions. However, under Level 2 conditions, 10% less water (21.6kl) will cost approximately this much. The same amount (24kl) will now cost R344,75. This is to encourage water saving. The increases have been calibrated to have a smaller impact on small domestic consumers and households that use water efficiently. Customers who use large amounts of water will face larger price increases. For an average domestic customer, the differences in price are as follows: Steps Unit Level 1 (10% reduction) Level 2 (20% reduction) Step 1 (0 < 6 kl) Per kl R0 R0 Step 2 (>6 < 10,5 kl) Per kl R11,07 R11,66 Step 3 (>10,5 < 20 kl) Per kl R15,87 R18,24 Step 4 (>20 < 35 kl) Per kl R23,51 R29,75 Step 5 (>35 < 50 kl) Per kl R29,03 R45,40 Step 6 (>50 kl) Per kl R38,30 R85,09 To explain...

Ageing white workforce to impact SA labour market – report Dec 23 2015 16:33 Carin Smith Cape Town – The white workforce in South Africa is ageing and this has implications in areas ranging from employment equity to the shortage of skilled individuals, the SA Institute of Race Relations (IRR) said in a report on labour market trends issued on Wednesday. In 2015 close to half (48.5%) of what the IRR refers to as “African economically active people” were aged below 35. For the white population, about two-thirds (66.6%) of economically active people were aged 35 and above. According to the report, the labour market participation rates of the different race groups show that the rate for Africans has picked up since 1994. However, it still lags behind that of the white population by roughly ten percentage points. “Young Africans largely bear the brunt of unemployment. The number of unemployed people has increased faster than that of the employed. In addition, many unemployed people have been out of a job for several years, lessening the likelihood of again finding one,” according to the IRR. There is also a correlation between education and employment, with the unemployment rate of people with a tertiary qualification being less than half that of people with only a primary education. The IRR regards the quality of South Africa’s schools as a central obstacle to the employment of young people. READ: Labour policies driving poor from jobs – IRR The labour force absorption rate of Africans is very low at 40.7% – lower than in 2001 (42.1%). It is also about 20 percentage points below...

City of Cape Town still mum over sewage infested ocean Frightening levels of E-coli pollution found on beaches from Cape Town to Durban still spell disaster for beachgoers this December. By Laura Bradfield – November 26, 2015 Nothing has been done about the 50 million litres of raw sewage, still being pumped into the Cape’s oceans daily. The public was asked to contest this unethical practice in July of this year, and responded. Amongst these letters, was this one shared publically by Dr Jo Barnes from Stellenbosch University’s Community Health Sector to the Director of Waste Management. Absolutely nothing has been done. The European Union refuses to import fish from our coastline due to the high level of toxicity found in the fish captured off our coasts. It makes you wonder, what level of toxicity does the water need to reach before the fish captured from it are no longer fit for human consumption? In a recent interview with Prof. Edda Weimann: The Professor warned of the rising danger of untreated sewage water to the public; saying the risk for children and people with immune disorders is particularly high, although she says, “the beach is a risk to everyone”. Having seen many cases of healthy swimmers and paddlers contracting infections, she confessed to no longer swimming at the beaches herself. “It is up to the public to put pressure on the City to start treating the sewage properly before pumping it into the bay. It is a danger to the public. It could result in an epidemic at any time.”– Prof. E. Weimann South Africans are at the mercy of...

27 NOVEMBER 2015 / MEDIA RELEASE City warns that vehicle licence disc renewal notices are still not being sent Motorists whose vehicle licence discs expire on 30 November 2015 and are renewable by 22 December 2015 and those whose discs expire on 31 December 2015 and are renewable by 22 January 2016 will not be receiving renewal notices. Read more below: The City of Cape Town asks motorists to act proactively and to check the renewal date on their existing licence disc to ensure that the necessary arrangements are made, and to renew discs online where possible. Motorists are also reminded that the National Department of Transport’s new requirements apply, i.e. of providing, amongst others, proof of residence when applying for a motor vehicle licence disc renewal. ‘It is currently the busiest time of the year for our municipal offices, which include our motor vehicle registration centres. This, coupled with the additional requirements and also the lack of renewal notices, is affecting the turnaround time per customer. Motorists and other customers may also experience longer queues than what is the norm. We are doing everything in our power to ease any inconvenience to our residents, including deploying additional staff and moving staff between offices as hotspots arise,’ said the City’s Executive Deputy Mayor, Alderman Ian Neilson. Proof of address includes, among others, a utility bill issued by the municipality, and a telephone account or retail store account (provided that it is not older than three months). For a full list of acceptable documents that constitute proof, residents can visit the Western Cape Government website: www.westerncape.gov.za/tpw....

The power of the masses is real! For businesses, every social media platform is an opportunity to connect with their target audience. But it’s a double-edged sword. Strategizing and managing even a couple of social media platforms is a daunting task. Especially given that businesses have many promises to keep on social media. Here is some relevant data on social media. 60% of your company mentions on Twitter occur when you aren’t at office. 42% of users who complain on social media expect a response from brands within 60 minutes. 58% of marketers state that original content (written and visual) is the cornerstone of social media marketing. As per DOMO, 2460000 pieces of content is shared every minute on Facebook. On Twitter, users tweet 277,000 times per minute. The power of the masses is...

Paris: You Don’t Want to Read This Written by Peter Van Buren Saturday November 14, 2015 You don’t want to read this, and I take no pleasure in writing it, and no one really wants to hear it right now. But I believe it needs to be said. I join the world in grieving for the dead in Paris. I have grieved for the dead from 9/11 forward — the Australians who died in terror attacks on Bali in 2005, Londoners who died in terror attacks in 2005, the French citizens who died in the Charlie Hebdo attacks in January of this year, the Russians whose plane went down over the Sinai a week or so ago. I grieve also for those killed in smaller attacks already smuggled deep into the obscurity of our memory. And so we Tweet hashtags and phrases in high school French and post GIFs to Facebook. We know what to do; we’ve done this before. But it has to be said, especially looking at the sick repetition of the same story, that despite fourteen plus years of a war on terror, terror seems to be with us as much as ever, maybe even more. It is time to rethink what we have done and are doing. Since that day in 2001, the one with those terrible sparkling blue skies in New York, we have spied on the world, Americans at home and foreigners abroad, yet no one detected anything that stopped the Paris attacks. We gave up much to that spying and got nothing in return. Since 2001, the United States has led nations...

City events inject billions into the local economy Cape Town has increasingly become a popular events destination of choice. Testimony to this is the significant year-on-year increase in the number of events being hosted in the city. Aside from the huge economic injection into the local economy, the creation of much-needed jobs is also welcomed. While these jobs may be temporary in nature, they afford the individuals an opportunity to gain on-the-job training. Read more below: The City of Cape Town supported 45 events in the first quarterof 2013 (July to September). This number increased steadily to 90 events in 2014 and to a phenomenal 165 events in 2015. The economic spin-offs from these events hold enormous benefits for the city and its residents. This year there has been a mix of events hosted across the city. A number of national junior sporting events took place at indoor venues during the mid-year school holidays and a range of cultural events and music festivals featured on the events calendar. Other indoor events that were well suited for the winter season were the Innovation Summit, the Maker Faire and various entrepreneurship conferences. Winter festivals seem to be gaining some ground on the more traditional events and this year they took place in Somerset West and Durbanville. Added to this mix are the bigger sporting events that attract a large number of domestic and international participants and media. These events are the biggest contributors to local coffers. While it is not always possible to establish the economic contribution of all events, the international exposure for the city is phenomenal. The City’s support is part of...

Has Facebook Accidentally Revolutionised Recruitment with its Latest Change? From prominence.social This week, Facebook announced a change to the way their messaging systems work, which has the potential to significantly impact the way recruiters reach out to prospective candidates. HeadHunter’s insight: In short, the change means that you are virtually guaranteed to have your recruitment message at least read by a large proportion of Facebook’s massive, and more importantly, very active, audience (that’s 1.5 billion people, 84% of which check it daily, to be precise). The potential of this new feature for recruitment is massive (just look at the example we mocked up above), especially when it comes to connecting with passive talent. With LinkedIn InMails remaining the most popular cold prospecting tool (email is still favoured for warm leads), it is about time there was another option that, when used correctly, has the potential to generate higher response rates. In short, the change means that you are virtual… and for those who are not clear, virtual is a term used by Henri Bergson, Gilles Deleuze and Manuel DeLanda to denote potentiality as being equally real to actuality, but in a different manner....